


The Nightmare's Just Begun

by CycloneRachel



Category: Krypton (TV 2018), Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Character Death In Dream, Crossover Adjacent, Dark Crack, Dreams and Nightmares, Gen, Mentioned Lena Luthor - Freeform, Mentioned William Dey, Mentioned other characters - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-31
Updated: 2019-10-31
Packaged: 2021-01-15 23:09:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,779
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21261146
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CycloneRachel/pseuds/CycloneRachel
Summary: Kara dreams of home- and of an old failure- featuring a face she's just started to become familiar with.





	The Nightmare's Just Begun

When she opened her eyes, she was on Krypton.

She didn’t know immediately, of course. She could’ve been in any supervillain’s underground lair- there was a control panel, and a large cage made of dark metal and what looked like yellow or orange glass. Or maybe that was just the light playing tricks on her- Kara wasn’t sure.

But the man in front of her, the man behind the glass wearing clearly recognizable gold and brown armor, she was completely sure about.

“William?” she asked, taking a step forward to examine him closer. Sure enough, this man, whoever he was, wore the face of William Dey. Her… coworker, and tentative ally, now that she knew the truth about him. He might’ve been laying the compliments on a little bit thick the last time they spoke, and she had some choice words for him before then, but… why was he here? What was he doing?

And why did he look like a soldier from over 1200 years in the past?

For that was where the armor came from, as Aunt Astra had once told her about. Alura made it clear she was horrified by her sister telling her baby girl war stories (from any era, but as this one involved the Els heavily, it was more personal for Alura and her family), but Astra, Military Guild member as she was, dismissed it as a history lesson.

And a learning experience, to not do the same once she was older, she would say. _If you don’t learn your history, you’re doomed to repeat it_ (something Kara learned on Earth as well, apparently a phrase that transcended planets)

_I promise not to start any wars,_ she’d say. Astra would smile, and ruffle her hair, and say she’d come back to continue the story the next day. Which she would, and which Kara was now grateful for.

But even so, she thought she would’ve recognized that William resembled a Kryptonian soldier. Astra had access to holograms, as much as Alura frowned on them even more, and she showed her as many pictures as she could.

_Guess this really wasn’t in the history books,_ Kara thought. _But what’s really going on here?_

“You can hear it, right? They’re getting louder.” Not-William said, addressing someone who Kara now saw in front of her, facing him- a woman, with long, dark hair. “Closer. The war isn’t going to end unless somebody does something.”

“But why does it have to be you?”

“They said I’m the only soldier with the right mutation. It’s called the Vara gene, apparently.”

“How does a mutation end the war?”

“I don’t know. But if the Els believe it can make a difference, I have to do whatever I can to help.”

_He believes in us. In my family._

_Just like William believes in me, apparently. Is that why I’m having this dream? Do I want him to appreciate Kara Zor-El, too?_

_I’ve had weirder dreams than this. Let’s just see what happens._

“I’m sorry.” He said. “It’s just, uh…”

“Who you are.”

“It’s who I am.”

“They said you could withdraw any time before the experiment’s commenced.” The woman said, looking worried. “Now, have you thought about what that means, Dax? They wouldn’t have that rule unless they anticipated that-“

“The subject would be driven to abort.” He finished.

“Don’t call yourself that. Don’t ever call yourself the subject. You’re my Dax.”

Dax (so that was his name) gave the woman a gentle smile.

“You’re reading too much into that.” He said. “They want decisiveness.”

“And what shall I tell our daughter?”

“Tell her her father is helping to build a better tomorrow.” Said a new voice, and both Kara and the other woman turned around to see her. She was wearing the House of El crest on her dress, and her hair was braided on top of her head. “So that she may grow up on a peaceful Krypton once more. A Krypton that will never again be marred in civil war.”

_Too bad that didn’t last,_ Kara thought. _There were peaceful times, but there were also wars- we tore our planet apart, and built domes around our cities to convince ourselves we could build it back up again, pretending like we didn’t need the whole world. And eventually… the planet couldn’t take it anymore._

“Apologies, but time is precious.” The El woman said. “We must get started.”

The other woman was crying now, as she looked up at Dax.

“End this war, love.” She said. “Then come home.”

“I will.” Dax answered. “I promise. Goodbye, Enaj.”

“Goodbye, Dax.”

He placed one finger on the glass, and she matched it, as Dax let out a sigh.

Then, the scene changed- Enaj was gone, and Dax had removed his armor.

(Kara tried not to imagine whether or not this was what William looked like without a shirt.)

“So this is where you’d like me to stand?” he asked. “Here?”

“No, that’s quite alright, Dax.”

Kara turned, to find herself looking at another man- though not one she recognized.

“And my name is Van-Zod.”

Zod? But-

She wasn’t going to dwell on that. For now, she kept her focus on the rest of the story.

“I believe you’ve already met Wedna-El. We’ll be taking you through this process.”

“Okay. So, uh… what do you need me to do?”

“You did everything you needed to do when you signed up, Dax.” Wedna-El answered. “You’re a true hero.”

_Or someone who’s made a grave mistake,_ Kara thought. _But who knows? Maybe this El and Zod actually have a good plan for him._

“But if we’re going to win this war, you need to be more than that.” She continued. “We need to make you more than that.”

It made sense. Her people were always trying to improve themselves- perhaps so they didn’t focus on what was going on outside- and if they thought one man could win a war for them, they’d think of a way he could be improved enough to match that capability. Even over a thousand years in the past, they were the same.

But what were they going to do?

She had never really considered how they were improved. But now, it looked like she was going to find out.

“What do you mean, exactly?” Dax asked.

“Your unique genetic makeup, it makes it possible for us to enhance your cellular memory indefinitely.” Van-Zod replied. “By exposing your cells to different vulnerabilities, we will build up your body’s defenses until you’re invulnerable to all lethal force.”

“You want to make me a superhero?”

Van-Zod laughed slightly, while Wedna-El addressed him.

“Are you ready to be one, Dax?”

“Let’s do it.”

Wedna-El nodded, and activated her control panel, as Van-Zod did his.

“Trial one, test one, initiated.”

There was a whirring, and Dax’s chamber filled with some kind of gas. He doubled over, coughing and gagging, and while Van-Zod looked down, Wedna-El observed him, eyes not once wavering.

~  
The scene changed again, and the chamber was still filled with gas, as Dax screamed.

Van-Zod still looked worried, but Wedna-El only watched. There was a cold confidence in her eyes, that Kara wouldn’t have been surprised to see on Lena.

Dax fell to the floor of his chamber, and moved no more.

“Subject is deceased.” The computer announced. “Time: 12:56.”

“Test one: Failed.” Wedna-El said. “Administer resurrection protocol.”

The machines came to life again, and slowly, Dax stood up, veins raised on his skin.

_What are they doing to you?_

“Initiative. Trial one, test two. Subject is conscious and alert.”

“What did you do to me?” Dax asked.

“Trial one, test two initiated.” Wedna-El said, pressing a button. The gas filled the chamber again, and Dax now looked terrified.

_I wouldn’t be opposed to seeing William look scared in front of me,_ Kara started to think. _But this guy… he doesn’t deserve whatever this is._

“Test two, successful. Shall we move on?”

With no answer from her partner, Wedna-El continued.

“Trial two, test one.” She announced, and this time the chamber filled with fire.

“Subject is deceased. Time: 1:56.”

“Administer resurrection protocol.”

~  
Kara hardly recognized Dax, the next time the scene changed.

“Pathogen level within subject now critical.” The computer announced. The man inside the chamber shouted, his skin now looking as though it were covered in veins, red and raw. He screamed, then, as what looked like his bones protruded from him, no longer needing any tests in order to change.

“Subject is deceased. Time: 5:34.”

“Test 105 failed.” Wedna-El said. “Administer resurrection pro-“

She couldn’t watch anymore. Couldn’t listen to her ancestor (or at least, who she thought was her ancestor) ignore this man who now screamed for mercy. Could she not let him stay dead? Were there no limits on what could be done to people, in the name of scientific progress?

Fortunately, Van-Zod agreed with Kara, and Kara watched their argument with a heavy heart. Saw Wedna-El lose hope, acknowledge that there was no other way to continue, even though it went against what they both stood for.

“Administer resurrection protocol.”

~  
Enaj stormed into the room, a gun in her hands.

_The war is over,_ she said. _But you keep my husband from me._

_There will always be another war,_ Wedna-El insisted. _Your husband is the key to everything._

_But you still turned him into a monster._ Kara thought. _Why am I dreaming that my family is responsible for this?_

Enaj was crying, trying to get a glimpse of her husband.

But when he emerged…

Kara knew that figure very well.

She’d just never heard this version of the origin story of Doomsday.

_What if it were me behind the glass?_ She thought. _Would I even have a mind left to reconnect with someone I love?_

~  
The scene changed once more.

Except instead of medieval Krypton, it was Lena’s underground lab, deep below L-Corp. Kara, now, stood behind the glass, staring at Alex, who was pleading with her to hold on. And Lena Luthor watched Kara with the same cold expression of Wedna-El in her eyes, as a swarm of nanites entered her body.

“You are still flawed, Kara Zor-El, Kryptonian or not.” She said, as Kara saw scans of herself on the monitors in her cell. “I am going to make you perfect.”

~  
Kara woke up screaming, hands at her throat.

She got out of bed, then, and as she washed her face she looked into the mirror.

_Thank Rao, I was just dreaming. William Dey isn’t actually Doomsday, and Lena isn’t going to put robots into my brain._

_They’re both absurd._

_Aren’t they?_

**Author's Note:**

> So, I guess Halloween is the appropriate time for a "Kara dreams of the _Krypton_ universe and their version of Doomsday (who happens to be played by the same actor as William) and thinks she's actually seeing William" fic, huh?
> 
> And as to why... uh. Consider this a weird side-effect of Crisis, I guess?
> 
> Anyway. I hope this was enjoyable, or at least interesting? And please tell me if it was.


End file.
